Uxbridge, Massachusetts

Uxbridge, Massachusetts
Town
Location in Massachusetts
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts
County	Worcester County
Settled	1662
Incorporated	1727
Government
• Type	Open town meeting
Elevation	270 ft (80 m)
Population  (2000)
• Total	11,156
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (Eastern)
ZIP code	01569
Area code	508 / 774
Website	http://www.uxbridge-ma.gov/

Uxbridge is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,156 at the 2000 census.

History

Uxbridge was first settled in 1662 and was officially incorporated in 1727.

Uxbridge, like scores of communities in the commonwealth, retains many remnants of its vibrant history. Driving through town you can see examples of old colonial homesteads, brick commercial blocks, canal tow paths and textile mills. A number of them look the way they did over two hundred years ago, several others have “died” and are reborn and revitalized, and some are just shells within which you can hear echoes of the past. It is this rich cultural history that attracts countless to live in this community and call it home.

When the first pioneers came out to this area of Southern Worcester County (then Essex County) their ambition was to set up a prosperous town that would turn a profit. The founding families dreamed of settling a plantation that would be an agricultural success, and they were determined their little town would stand on its feet fiercely self sufficient. Consequently, in 1662, Squinshepauke Plantation was started at the Netmocke settlement. The plantation was later incorporated as the town of Mendon in 1667 consisting of eight miles square of Native American land. The land was purchased from the Nipmuc Indians “for divers good and vallewable considerations them there unto Moovinge and especiall for an in consideration of the summe of twenty fower pound Ster.” The settlers were ambitious and set about clearing the roads that would mark settlement patterns throughout the town’s history. Mother Mendon as the town is called gave “birth” to the towns of Blackstone, part of Bellingham, Hopedale, Milford, Millville, Northbridge, part of Upton and our own Uxbridge. Instead of walking you through a boring history timeline, let’s walk through Uxbridge’s history using the hills, valleys and roads to understand the rich record of this community.

The proprietors as they were called in Mendon gradually migrated out from the center, and for us the important migration routes were southerly and westerly. Families staked out farmsteads on the other side of Nipmuc Pond in the fertile flood plains of the rivers. The intervales became valuable farm land and the cedar swamps were precious for their cedar and the plants needed in colonial medicines. Far from the saw mill, grist mill and meetinghouse, this crew in the remote reaches of Mendon became independent and learned to survive away from the scrutiny of the town fathers. The lack of river crossings made regular contact with the center of Mendon almost impossible and gave a sense of unity to the people out west. As years would go by the settlers in the western part (often referred to as the “rabble rousing western inhabitants”) saw the potential for their area to break off and take a stand as an independent town, and they made the break on June 27, 1727. Thus the town of Uxbridge was born, a town tired of being ignored by the older parent and like any teenager, self-assured that it could do better on its own. Surrounded by three major rivers, Blackstone, Mumford and West, Uxbridge’s future as a thriving textile and commerce leader was practically guaranteed.

Local lore states that the northeast and southern parts of Uxbridge were originally settled by the Nipmuc people and the abundance of Indian arrowheads in those areas would seem to confirm this story. The Blackstone River was called the Great River by the Nipmuc’s and they were “a people of the fresh waters”. The Nipmuc name does not refer to a specific village or tribe, but to the natives that inhabited almost all of Central Massachusetts into Connecticut and Rhode Island. The Nipmuc’s stayed within their homeland traveling from site to site with the seasons, while the Blackstone River ecosystem supported their agricultural and nutritional needs. What we do know about the Nipmuc’s locally is that during King Philip’s War in 1675, Praying Indians (natives who converted to Christianity) were settled into Praying Indian Villages and at least two villages were located in Uxbridge (referred to as Waentug after the tribe that fished the rich waters). We will start our journey into Uxbridge in the southern part of town.

The major artery was the Providence and Worcester Road and along this road the section mushroomed. Roads fed off what is now Route 146A and led into cedar swamps, moist cranberry bogs and deep woods. Agriculture was the backbone of any town at the time and the large farms of this section still dot the landscape; some still in the same family they were in when the town was settled. The area is seeped in antiquity and a few cellar holes are all that remain of the first homesteads built in Uxbridge. Quakers came and settled here and brought with them their religion and their industrious ways. The beginning of a commercial center called Quaker City became located along the road called the Quaker Highway. George Southwick established his general store and the Uxbridge Social and Instructive Library was located in the back room. The Quakers were abolitionists and this section was the heart of the Underground Rail Road in Uxbridge. Its proximity to the Blackstone Canal and the major rail roads made it an excellent stop on the daring adventure north. An enterprising people, the Quakers started many mills in the area and invested in rail roads and larger mills in surrounding communities. They built the beautiful meetinghouse in 1770 with bricks made from the brickyard across the street near the Blackstone River. Houses up and down Aldrich Street are made of local brick and bear the heritage of their Quaker owners. Although this section was not the industrial heart of town, small mills sprang up on the local brooks, ponds and streams. Emerson, Forge and Ironstone Brooks, which once powered mills, now attract fishing enthusiasts with their stocked trout. Lee Pond, Chocolog Pond and Ironstone Pond may have had other roles in history, but they are best remembered as excellent swimming spots on a hot summer day. Village sections of this part of Uxbridge are Albee, Aldrich, Chocolog, Happy Hollow, Ironstone and Scadden, all of which still reflect the Yankee pioneers and the richness of the area. The area today is zoned both agricultural and industrial giving it a contrasting view of itself. Alongside the meandering river with fields of produce you will see industrial parks hoping to attract tenants. Caught somewhere in the middle between the press of commercial and residential development is the future of this section.

The beginning of the first east-west route in the north part of town was the Boston- Hartford Turnpike. It started as a cart path leading to Jepson’s meadow and Colonel Crown’s land, meandering till it came to the hills and more Yankee farms. The soil was rocky and difficult to farm, but farm they did and today the rolling green fields on the hills are a testimony to their determination. Historians say the troops passed along this road on their way to fight the French and Indian War and it was also a major supply route during the War of 1812. The road was a section of the Middle Post Road set down by Benjamin Franklin; while simultaneously serving as the Ninth Massachusetts Turnpike, from which it received its name. The Hartford Turnpike, or Hartford Avenue as it is called today, is a busy road that hustles you through the differing life styles of its residents. You start at the Mendon border with open fields and wetlands, go past West Hill (one of the Praying Indian settlements) then continue into Rice City, once home to the Wood Tavern, a busy colonial tavern and probate court. The road crosses the Blackstone River at Rice City Pond and climbs up Stage Coach Hill, famous because the passengers had to push the coach up the steep grade. Continuing down the road you enter into Rogerson Village where the former Crown and Eagle Cotton Mill still stands tall by the Mumford River. The tasteful and esthetic mill village was the dream of Robert Rogerson and he spared no expense building the mill, mansion, company store and mill worker homes. A large section of the mill burned in 1975 but was remodeled and turned into senior housing. From Rogerson Village you can bear right and go to Linwood, home to the French section of town called the Bowery. The French Canadians came to work in the mills and added much to the culture of the town. They had their own society and meeting hall, the Progressive Club and their own newspaper, Le Travailleur. Going straight from the Crown and Eagle Mill the road comes to an important intersection in the North End. North Uxbridge was home to the Italians who settled in Uxbridge and was the “other” busy commercial and social center of town. The streets were filled with people and there was always something going on either in Lynch’s Drug Store or Tancrell’s Market. The road has a fork to the left that goes to the Rivulet section, once home to the Rivulet Mill. The turnpike road then climbs up three hills, each one steeper than the previous. First is Quarry Hill, home to the former Blanchard Quarry whose granite lines the curbs of New York City. Going up higher and higher you reach Williams and Castle Hills, where the barns of the dairies that were a major part of life in this town still dot the landscape. The view from the top of the hills where the road enters Douglas is breathtaking and seems to go on forever.

The eastern part of town gave birth to a large segment of the town’s textile industry. Here the West and Blackstone Rivers were tapped for the power to run the mills. As in all mill towns, each section of town that sprouted up around a mill took on the name and the identity of the mill, and here the names of Hecla, Calumet and Wheelocksville are significant names in the memories of local residents. The Hecla section of town took its name from the Hecla Mill which became American Woolen in its last incarnation. Here is where the Polish community lived and Hecla Street was lined with food markets, cock fights and fun living. Calumet, just down the street and around a turn sprang up around the Calumet Woolen Mill which became the Stanley Woolen Mill and was owned by the Wheelock family. Stanley Woolen holds the dubious distinction as being the last mill in town to close. It sold cloth to the government for the troops in the Civil War and its cloth was in high demand from top designers like Pierre Cardin and Bill Blass before it closed around 1990. Just down the road in the other direction was the Elmdale section, named after the mill at the end of the road. The Elmdale Mill is the site of the Daniel Day Mill which was the first woolen mill in town. The old one room Elmdale School house still stands and is the site of many local functions and events. Down the road in the other direction is Wheelocksville with the Waucantuck Mill who branded all its wooden boxes with the symbol of an American Indian chief. Waucantuck Mill made the first wash and wear fabric in the country. Fierce pride and competition developed in the bowling leagues and baseball teams that represented each mill, and as far back as the eighteen eighties, the weekly newspapers carried the results of their league contests. Each of the mills had its own farm and dairy milk route: Elmwood Farm belonged to the Waucantuck Mill, Elmdale Farms went with Elmdale Mill and the Hecla Mill, a division of the Calumet Mill, had Hecla Farms. The hum of the mill looms may be silent but there is still plenty to appreciate in this area. Henry Street has majestic stands of yellow pines and scattered about the woods you can find evidence of early homesteads and rumored Underground Railroad tunnels. The serene beauty of Pout Pond and adjacent Henry Legg Conservation Land add to the bucolic scenery of this section. The old Stanley Woolen and Waucantuck Mills are undergoing revitalization by people with vision. Stanley Woolen is being rehabbed for commercial rental space, and Waucantuck is being rehabbed for living and business space. Long eyesores on the major road into town, the fresh coat of paint on Stanley Woolen and the signs of design progress at Waucantuck let all travelers on the road know that Uxbridge is taking steps to join with other towns and face the future.

If we continue west from Wheelocksville and Hecla we enter the Center of town. The Center was bounded by Liberty, Independence and Prospect Hills and in the days before malls, everything you could ever want or need could be found in center. The Center became prominent as Quaker City slowly faded away and agriculture became secondary to the Industrial Revolution. In Center you had the Capron Mill, the saw mill, fulling mill and the grist mill. Here was the lunatic asylum run by Dr. Samuel Willard who fought in Shay’s Rebellion. Dunking in the mineral spring pond behind the old inn was deemed to be an effective treatment for insanity, as was working on the good doctor’s farm. This pond (Shuttle Shop Pond) was a favorite ice skating spot for children for years till it was filled in by the town after the shop burned down in 1963. Hotel Wilson (now known as the Uxbridge Inn) welcomed travelers to the town who came to enjoy the same healing waters that “treated” Dr. Willard’s patients. In the 1800’s, winter sleighing parties would travel from Mendon and spend a jolly night in the old inn. Saver’s Bank saved the inn from demolition and has restored it to its former beauty keeping an important landmark for future generations to enjoy. The Whitmore Block, which used to be where the bank’s parking lot is now, was home to the infamous Bucket of Blood Tavern and Sam Mabel’s Market. The Center was the first part of town to have its streets lit by electric lights and was the first to enjoy the modern convenience of the telephone. Before the town had municipal buildings, town meetings were held in Taft’s Hall and the library was located in Barnes Jewelry Store. When the town hall was finally built in 1883 it was an important part of the social life of the community. Up in the large auditorium the first talking movies in town were shown and later on live bands kept everyone’s toes tapping. During the 1940’s and 50’s, ice cream in Lynch’s store was required after going to the movies and the trysts at the soda fountain were the stuff of local legends. The downtown is the religious center of Uxbridge, home to most of the churches of the community and is also home to many of the towns’ historic houses.

Seaming together all these sections of town, their ethnic groups and diverse occupations were the rivers. Progress comes with the industrial revolution and the need for getting the goods to the market becomes a major concern. The teamster drove his huge wagons loaded with textile goods to Woonsocket and to Worcester, but imagine what could be done if there was a better way to the ports? Thus was born the inland waterway called the Blackstone Canal. A massive project and engineering feat, the 45 mile canal connected Central Massachusetts with Providence. The canal was built in 1828 and introduced the town to its first immigrant group, the Irish. The Irish dug the canal risking both life and limb to complete the dream. This rich and wonderfully vibrant people would settle in this town and before long they became prominent leaders in the community. The canal was simply a mud ditch that meandered alongside the Blackstone River with a dirt tow path which allowed the boats to be pulled along the canal. There was a large granite lock in town at Goat Hill and remnants of the canal and the lock are visible today thanks to the Hurricane of 1955. The canal was not as successful as the shareholders had hoped, but what it did achieve was the emergence of the valley as a premier exporter of textile fabrics. In 1847 railroads will replace the canal as the best way to get your goods to market, so now the teamsters bring the goods to the train station. With the railroads, Uxbridge no longer looked within; the town now looked out on the horizon. Boston, which before the rail road was a three day round trip by carriage; now became a place of employment, a simple ride in the morning and home at night. The rivers flowed with the economic times and when the demand for Uxbridge cloth was high, times were good. However, when the supply out produced the demand, times were bad. In the past, no matter how bad times were, the mills always got back on their feet and workers would be called back to work the looms.

By the 1970’s, there would be no call back to work, the mills would start to close and the looms would be silent for the first time in 200 years. The rivers which for so long made Uxbridge a good place to live, had become a dumping ground for the enormous chemical dye vats. The Blackstone River lost its title as the hardest working river in America and gained the dubious distinction as one of the most polluted rivers in America. The downtown where you could buy anything your family would ever need, was now boarded up and abandoned. Slowly the town re-invented itself, found an identity separate from the mills it was so long intertwined with. Zoning land industrial/commercial, it looked to newer, more modern business to help drive the community upwards. The road was long but successful. The community is growing again; the downtown area is undergoing a renaissance with arts centers and art stores attracting a new group of people. The town now has a historic committee who helps homeowners preserve and protect their historic houses for the benefit of the homeowner and the neighborhood. Uxbridge is no longer known for its fine cassimere and woolens, it is now known for its many acres of conservation land and parks. These trails will let you walk the routes traveled by the earliest inhabitants, the Nipmuc people, and will show you how life is coming back to the Blackstone. Hard work, belief in the impossible, plus a pragmatic approach to life, has kept this town vibrant and energized.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 78.7 km² (30.4 mi²). 76.5 km² (29.5 mi²) of it is land and 2.1 km² (0.8 mi²) of it (2.73%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 11,156 people, 3,988 households, and 3,034 families residing in the town. The population density was 145.8/km² (377.6/mi²). There were 4,090 housing units at an average density of 53.5/km² (138.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.04% White, 0.15% African American, 0.13% Native American, 0.61% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 0.30% from other races, and 0.70% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.95% of the population.

There were 3,988 households out of which 41.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.0% were married couples living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.9% were non-families. 19.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79 and the average family size was 3.22.

In the town the population was spread out with 29.2% under the age of 18, 5.8% from 18 to 24, 35.1% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 9.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 96.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $61,855, and the median income for a family was $70,068. Males had a median income of $47,969 versus $30,889 for females. The per capita income for the town was $24,540. About 3.6% of families and 4.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.0% of those under age 18 and 11.0% of those age 65 or over.